Chapter 53: Flowers React to Feelings

The house had a new problem.

It was alive.

Not metaphorically. Not spiritually. Actually alive.

By morning, flowers had crawled up the walls like they paid rent. Vines peeked out from under doors. Tiny buds bloomed and closed with suspicious timing, especially whenever Gojo walked past.

Gojo stood in the hallway, staring at a rose that had not been there yesterday.

“…Why is it watching me?”

The rose bloomed wider.

Anzu Midare nearly cried.

“I-I’m so sorry! They’re not supposed to spread this fast!”

Hikami crossed her arms, unimpressed. “Your plants are trying to seduce him.”

“They are not!”

The rose released a puff of pink pollen.

Gojo sneezed. “Ah—!”

Every flower in the hallway bloomed at once.

The floor creaked as vines slithered out from the walls.

Raika grabbed Gojo by the collar and yanked him back. “Stop reacting emotionally!”

“I didn’t do anything!”

Lightning sparked. Flowers wilted slightly, then bloomed again, stronger.

“…Why did that make it worse,” Raika muttered.

From the living room, Arashi leaned upside down on the couch. “Yo, plant girl. Your weeds got beef with thunder?”

Anzu shook her head frantically. “They’re reacting to emotional spikes!”

Suma scoffed from the table. “So they’re reacting to this idiot existing.”

“I HEARD THAT,” Gojo snapped.

The moment his voice rose, vines burst through the floorboards.

One wrapped around Suma’s ankle.

Then another.

Then five more.

“EH?!”

Suma yelped as the vines yanked her off the table and hoisted her upside down mid-air, skirt flipping dangerously.

“PUT ME DOWN RIGHT NOW!”

Hiyori screamed. “S-SUMA-CHAN?!”

Suma flailed, face red with rage. “GOJO! FIX THIS! THIS IS YOUR FAULT!”

“I DIDN’T DO ANYTHING!”

The vines tightened.

Her skirt flipped higher.

“HEY— STOP— DON’T LOOK—!”

Hikami leaned in, smirking. “Wow. Nature’s cruel.”

Raika turned sharply away. “I am not witnessing this.”

Arashi laughed so hard she fell off the couch. “PLANTS GOT HANDS!”

Anzu ran forward, panicking. “S-Suma, please calm down! They respond to agitation!”

“HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO BE CALM LIKE THIS?!”

The vines squeezed tighter.

Gojo clenched his fists. “Let her go!”

The vines froze.

Slowly, gently, they loosened and lowered Suma back onto the table.

She landed, panting, hair a mess, dignity in ruins.

“…I’m burning this house down,” she muttered.

Anzu stared at the vines, then at Gojo.

“…They listened to you.”

The room went quiet.

Before anyone could respond, the front door slid open.

Cool air flowed in.

Water droplets formed along the edges of the blooming flowers.

Mizuki Hanegawa stepped inside calmly, long blue hair swaying gently. She took in the scene with one slow glance.

The flowers.

The destroyed floor.

Suma’s rumpled clothes.

Gojo standing at the center of it all.

“…Interesting,” Mizuki said softly.

She walked over and knelt beside a vine, touching it lightly.

It reacted instantly, blooming brighter.

But only when Gojo shifted nervously.

Mizuki’s eyes narrowed slightly.

She stood and approached Anzu. “You’re the flower fairy.”

Anzu nodded quickly. “Y-yes!”

“These plants,” Mizuki continued, “are not responding to you.”

Anzu blinked. “…They’re not?”

Mizuki turned to Gojo and gently took his hand.

Gojo stiffened. “M-Mizuki?”

The flowers exploded into bloom.

Petals rained down.

Vines twisted eagerly.

Hiyori gasped. “They’re happy…?”

Mizuki smiled faintly. “No. They’re reacting.”

She released his hand.

The flowers calmed.

“That confirms it,” Mizuki said.

Raika frowned. “Confirms what?”

Mizuki looked directly at Gojo. “Your emotional state is influencing external magic.”

The room went silent.

Anzu’s hands trembled. “T-that means…”

“The Spirit God power,” Mizuki continued calmly, “is no longer dormant.”

Gojo swallowed. “…Is that bad?”

Arashi scratched her head. “Sounds bad.”

Hikami smirked. “Sounds hot.”

Raika shot her a look. “It is dangerous.”

Mizuki nodded. “Yes. But also fascinating.”

Anzu clasped her hands tightly. “I never meant for this to happen. My magic amplifies emotional energy… but it shouldn’t bond like this.”

Gojo looked around at the flowers, the vines, the walls breathing softly.

“…So when I get stressed…”

“They respond,” Mizuki said. “When you feel overwhelmed, they protect. When you’re embarrassed, they react erratically.”

As if on cue, Gojo realized everyone was staring at him.

“…Stop looking at me like that.”

The flowers bloomed violently.

A vine snapped up and wrapped loosely around his waist.

“WHY IS IT TOUCHING ME LIKE THAT?!”

Hikami laughed. “Even the plants want you.”

Anzu nearly fainted. “I-I’ll fix it! I promise!”

Raika exhaled slowly. “This house is unstable.”

Mizuki placed a hand over her lips, thoughtful. “No. Gojo is evolving.”

Gojo stared at her. “That’s worse.”

The flowers slowly settled, petals drifting gently to the floor.

Outside, far beyond the walls, something dark felt the shift.

And smiled.

The Spirit God had begun to respond.

And the world had noticed.